In this 2006 file photo, a school bus drives down Saint Nicholas Drive in front of a Santa Claus statue at the Santa Claus House gift shop in North Pole, Alaska. (John Hagen/The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via AP, File)

(Newser)
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Christmas 2016 could be a merrier one in North Pole, where residents in the town whose light poles resemble candy canes will be able to put marijuana on their Christmas list. That's North Pole, Alaska, where the city council rejected a measure Monday that would have banned marijuana dispensaries. Marijuana for recreational use became legal in Alaska in February, and sales begin next year. "As far as the image goes here at North Pole, how do most people perceive Santa Claus?" one man actually named Santa Claus—himself a medicinal marijuana user—tells the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. "I would say Santa Claus is a pretty jolly fellow."

But while Santa's sleigh takes him around the globe, Claus "would like to have access to medical marijuana here in North Pole and not have to travel to Fairbanks to get it." Some worried how others might perceive North Pole if marijuana dispensaries are allowed. But "we sell alcohol in this town," says one councilman. "We sell cigarettes in this town. We sell guns in this town. Where are you going to draw the line?"